“Pork or beef?”

If he asked me one more freaking time what I wanted, I was going to scream. Jack had a package of what appeared to be pork chops minus the bone in one hand, and a couple of steaks in the other.

“I couldn’t care less. Can you just make a decision, so we can go? I thought women were supposed to be the ones who had difficulty making up their minds. Sheesh,” I said and tried to push the cart, but two big, strong hands clamped down on mine, halting my progression.

The heat and strength of his hands shocked me. Feeling his body behind me again awoke those tingles in certain places. His chin settled on my shoulder and his breath on my neck made me shiver. I loved how safe I felt with him holding me like this—nobody could get to me. Cuts and scratches adorned his knuckles, and my stomach sank. Jack may have beaten the tar out of Gabe, but that didn’t mean he came out unscathed.

“Harper, I want to know what you enjoy eating. Can you help me with that? Is there anything you don’t like?” Being a bitch had its time and place, and I was fairly sure Jack knew I was pissed off. But the guy not only stood up for me, he saved me from whatever Gabe was trying to do. Then he was nice enough to take me to the police station instead of going back to his work. Now that I thought about it, the man gave up his entire morning to help me. Not only that, but he was clearly hurt and bleeding and never said a thing.

My breath hitched, and tears started flowing down my face. I shook my head and tried to stop crying, but it was too late. The dam had burst. Shit.

“Jesus, what’s going on?” he said, and quick as a wink, I was turned and in his arms. He held me like that, in the middle of the meat department, while I lost my mind. Anxiety swirled through my body, but Jack held me together as I sobbed uncontrollably.

I smelled a distinct floral scent and then a cold hand patted my back. “I know how you feel, sweetheart. I became a vegan years ago, and it’s a tough thing to see all of God’s creatures in this state, isn’t it?” My head turned to see an older woman dressed in a tie-dye dress that was clearly three sizes too small. The absurdity of what she said made me snort and nod my head. “You take care, dear. Let this handsome young man take care of you.” Then she was off on her way.

“You all right?” he asked, concern knitted on his brows. “You haven’t turned vegan in the last two weeks, have you?” I had no choice but to burst out laughing at that. My hand smacked his hard chest.

“No, I just never thanked you for helping me this morning. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t shown up when you did. And your hands are bleeding, but you never said a word.” I sniffed and gently touched his injured hands. My eyes found his and I said, “Thanks, Jack. I appreciate everything that you’ve done for me today.”

His smile melted the ice on my heart. “You’re welcome. My hands are fine, just scrapes. But I’ll lie and say they hurt if you keep touching them like that.” His grin turned naughty. He bent down to kiss my mouth, but I turned my head, so he’d get my cheek instead. I wasn’t ready for that. Even though I was grateful he came to my rescue, he still hadn’t explained where he disappeared to for two weeks.

“I missed you, baby. Every fucking day, did you know that?” he said and used his finger to lift my chin. “Of course, you didn’t, because I was a dick and didn’t call you. I have a thousand excuses and I have none. A real man would have fought through every fucking doubt that entered his mind, but I didn’t. I let that shit poison my brain until I decided that setting you free was the best thing to do.” His rough hand stroked my face. “I was wrong. I was a dick. I am so sorry, Harper. More sorry than you’ll ever know. Can you forgive a stupid bastard like me for treating you like that?”

The sadness in his eyes and the sincerity of his words thawed my heart completely. This handsome man’s apology made my knees weak. I weaved my fingers behind his neck and guided him to my lips. To say he devoured me was an understatement. His mouth was greedy on mine, and he took what he wanted. When his tongue entered my mouth, I groaned at the feeling of having him inside again. He tasted like coffee and mint gum and I savored him. My hands moved to his thick, soft hair, running it between my fingers.

“Leave them alone. I’d make out with him in the meat aisle, too.” We heard from a passerby. I tore my lips away from Jack’s and plunged my face into his chest. How embarrassing. Jack’s body shook.

“We need to stop making out in public places.” He kissed the top of my head, and I pushed back to look into his deep brown eyes.

“Who was the beauty queen in aisle two?” I asked, my voice laced with suspicion.

He closed his eyes tightly, then opened them. “A very big mistake. Something that should have never happened. I want to tell you about all that. But not now. You need to get home and rest. And truth be told, my nerves have had enough for today.”

I could deal with that. We finished shopping quickly—I figured it was best that way. Jack’s way of picking out food became a little too sexy and suggestive. I’d soon lost count how many times I had to bat away his wandering hands. Not that I wanted him to stop, but the supermarket just wasn’t the place.

“Thanks for the ride, Jack,” I told him and gave him a peck on the cheek before I jumped out of the SUV.

“Harper,” he called, and I turned around to see him with multiple plastic bags on his arms. “A little help?” He raised his full arms up.

“With what?” I asked and walked back.

“Do me a favor and grab my backpack, sweetheart.” Then he trudged toward the stairs.

“What are you doing?” I yelled, but he continued on his way. Shit. I slugged the bag over my arm and ran to catch up with him. “Jack, where are you going?” I asked and hooked my hand through his arm.

“Harper, stop fucking around. These are heavy.”

“You’re coming into my apartment?”

“Yeah, I’m coming in. You think I’d leave you alone after you got attacked and went to the police station? Jesus.” He shook his head and heaved the bags up the steps. Okay. Jack bought groceries and was bringing them into my place. For me.

He stepped aside so I could unlock the door.

“Uh, I just need to change out of my work clothes. I’ll be right back,” I said, then dashed down the hall to my room and shut the door. Back to the door, I slid down and sat. My hand could feel the thudding of my heart, and my mind tried to quiet it. Jack was in my apartment. Jack…was in…my…apartment. Oh my God, Jack was in my apartment.

Think, Harper. If I could remember why the hell I came into my room in the first place, that would be a great start. I looked down. Ah, right, to change. Picking the perfect outfit wasn’t too difficult. A top and shorts that I bought with Riley would work perfectly. The shorts were short. Like short, short. I loved how they showed off my legs. My top was fabulous—navy and white tie-dye but in a more sophisticated pattern, and it tied behind my neck, leaving a big chunk of my back open. Sexy and cute. A quick brush through my hair and I was ready to go out there to face him.

Immediately after opening my bedroom door, I smelled smells that normally didn’t occur in my apartment. Cooking smells. Like really, really great cooking smells.

I followed my nose and ears to the kitchen, and there was Jack in all his glory, chopping stuff. He’d changed—probably clothes from his backpack—into a well-fitting, white T-shirt and jeans. No clue what he was preparing because I was so focused on his freaking arms, hands, and muscles all moving in symphony as a well-oiled machine while he prepared a feast.

Jack’s head turned slightly, and he took me in. “Wow, Harper. You look incredible. Come here.” His deep, appreciative voice shook me out of my new arm porn addiction, and without thinking, I padded up to him in my bare feet.

He pulled me to him and cupped my face with his hands, then leaned down and kissed me. Just like before, I melted into his body. I didn’t know if it was seeing him chopping shit in his hot white T-shirt or the wonderful aromas he was creating in my kitchen, but I went a bit wild. My hands found pay dirt underneath his shirt. His hot skin tightened as my hands rubbed his back and then moved around to his stomach where I felt his muscles clench as I ran my fingers down, and then big, strong hands suddenly had my wrists in a vise grip.

“Whoa, Harper. I’m cooking for you, honey. Fuck,” he said, breaking our out of control kiss and leaning his forehead on mine, but still grasping my wrists. Then he did something sweet. He pulled my wrists up and kissed the inside of each one. Was he for real? “Let me feed you, then we can figure out what’s for dessert, okay?” he said in a cryptic way, grinning his sexy devil grin at me again.

I gave in because what he was making smelled way better than ramen noodles or mac and cheese. Quite honestly, I was starved and worn out. So, if a hot man wanted to cook for me, far be it from me to argue.

“Can I help?” I offered as he gave me back my wrists. Hopefully, he didn’t give me anything too difficult to do.

“I need a big frying pan and a pot. Then you can start the rice for me,” Jack said, moving back to chopping the green and red peppers. A pang of guilt struck me as I remembered throwing their friends during my rant. The poor peppers didn’t see that coming. He had a small frying pan already cooking some kind of fragrant mystery. How was he able to accomplish all this while I was changing?

I grabbed my frying pan, and embarrassment filled me at the sight of the Teflon peeling. What would Jack think of my shitty cookware? Next, I yanked out a pot for the rice and realized I’d gone about as far as I could. Nervously chewing on my lip wasn’t helping.

Jack noticed my apprehension and coached me. “The rice is in one of the bags. Measure out a cup of it and rinse it in a strainer.” You had to rinse rice? I did as I was told and dumped the rice into the pot. “Two cups of water now,” he said just as I heard my phone. “Go answer it, honey. I’ll finish up.”

I hurried to my purse on the couch and found my phone. “Hello?”

“Harper?” Charlie said on the other end.

“Yeah, of course, it’s me. Are you okay?” I asked, worried that something was wrong with her or the baby. She never called me at this time of the day.

“I feel so fucking sick. You said I should call you when I feel bad, so I’m calling you. Harper, why the hell am I doing this? I feel like I have some kind of incurable tropical disease,” she carried on. I was so relieved that nothing was wrong. Well, that nothing big was wrong. I sighed and collapsed onto the couch.

“Because you’re growing a whole new human being to bring into this world to do great things. Gosh, I sort of hope you’re having a girl. I can’t wait to go shopping for girlie stuff. Tiny little girlie things, can you believe it, Charlie?” I asked her, hoping to get her mind off of how horrible she felt.

“Keep going,” she told me. So, I kept it up.

“Like little pink sleepers and those teeny tiny undershirts. Oh, and some of those cute baby shoes. Those are a must. Can you imagine how tiny her little feet are going to be?” I said and teared up at the thought of seeing her baby’s feet for the first time. I wiped under my eyes. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. A boy would be fabulous. But if it’s a boy, you guys definitely have to keep popping them out until you have a girl.” Maybe that wasn’t the right thing to say to a newly pregnant woman currently suffering from all-day sickness.

“Are you fucking insane? I’m never fucking doing this again. Why any woman has more than one kid is a fucking mystery to me,” Charlie said, not mincing words. Her language shocked me because she rarely swore. That was a real gauge as to how crappy the woman must have felt.

I heard sizzling in the kitchen and saw wafts of steam, then even more heavenly smells. What was Jack making in there?

The sound of a cell phone ringing blasted from the kitchen and I hoped Charlie couldn’t hear it. Jack answered it with a loud, deep, “Jack here,” and soon all bets were off.

“Where are you, Harper? At work?” she inquired in a suspicious motherly tone.

“Umm, at home,” I said and squeezed my eyes closed at the thought of the inquisition Jack’s phone and voice just caused.

“Oh my God! Is there a man in your apartment?” Charlie said, unable to control her enthusiasm. I couldn’t even lie and tell her it was my TV. She’d been over since the divorce and knew the fate of the large plasma.

“Um, yeah. His name is Jack,” I said, hoping I gave her sufficient details.

“You have a ‘Jack’ in your apartment right now? Does Mom know?” She inhaled noisily, waiting for my answer.

“Of course not! Are you crazy?” I frowned at her dumb question. Like as if I’d tell Mom. If I told my mom I had a “Jack” here, she would have kicked him out of the kitchen and lectured him on the value of always setting out a crystal platter of pickles and cheese.

“Of course, you didn’t. This is huge. What does he do for a living? Not another fucking used car salesman, I hope,” she commented bitterly.

I didn’t answer because Jack was just a few yards away from me.

“Oh shit, he’s right there, isn’t he? Don’t answer. You will call me back when he leaves and fill me in, right?” she questioned me in a low, serious voice.

“Umm, I guess,” I replied, totally uncommitted to calling her back.

“It would be a shame if I somehow accidentally mention to Mom you have a ‘Jack’ in your house,” she said in her best spy voice. The little minx.

“You wouldn’t!” I yelled and hoped like hell she didn’t spill the beans. Man, I didn’t even know if there were any beans to spill. “I’ll call you later, Little Miss Troublemaker. Take care of my niece or nephew, and I hope nobody accidentally brings over some raw meat to cook at your house.” I knew it was a low blow, but the woman was under the heavy influence of hormones and needed to be stopped with any means necessary.

“Stop it. No raw meat. Oh, you are evil. Go have fun with your ‘Jack’ and call me later. Love you, Harper.” There was a long pause and her breath hitched. “And I’m so fucking happy for you I could just scream.”